Music fills our lives. From TV commercials to the car radio, we rarely live one single day without hearing a song. But what if you could consciously use music to foster self-awareness, creativity, and, ultimately, deep healing of the body, mind, and spirit? Through her clinical practice and research, Dr. Louise Montello has discovered what she calls Essential Musical Intelligence - our innate ability to use music and sound to bypass the defenses of the conscious mind and move directly into the emotional/soul centers where true healing can occur. This groundbreaking book draws from the wisdom of Eastern philosophies and guides us through a systematic musical journey where we learn a series of clinically proven EMI exercises to balance and harmonize all five levels of consciousness - the body, breath/energy, mind, imagination/intellect, and the realm of bliss - leading to deep and lasting change. Essential Musical Intelligence is a powerful new system of self-healing which is deeply intuitive, creative, spiritually arousing, and fun.
Dr. Louise Montello (1956-2014) was an internationally known authority on music and healing and award-winning author of
Essential Musical Intelligence: Using Music as Your Path to Healing, Creativity and Radiant Wholeness (Quest, 2002). Founder of Performance Wellness, Inc. and creator of the Montello Method for Performance Wellness, Dr. Montello's mission was to foster personal and global transformation through the healing power of music, yoga, and behavioral medicine. Louise was also a board certified music therapist, certified psychoanalyst, and professor at The New School in New York City, as well as a jazz pianist and composer. She conducted clinical research on treating and preventing music performance anxiety in the Dept. of Psychology at New York University for over fifteen years, and trained conservatory students, arts educators, performing artists, and health professionals the world over.
Performance Wellness, Inc. is a nonprofit organization dedicated to meeting the mind-body health needs of performers and professionals from all walks of life. Our clinically proven programs, employing the Montello Method for Performance Wellness (PW), integrate techniques from the fields of music therapy, neuropsychology and yoga science. The cornerstone of the PW approach is Essential Musical Intelligence, the innate ability to use music and sound to bypass the limitations of the rational, conscious mind and instantly connect with your creative source to manifest healing, mastery, and joy in performance and in daily life.
The three-level certificate training program in the Montello Method for Performance Wellness is a multi-modal, research-based approach designed to offer performers, arts educators, creative arts therapists, and performing arts medicine practitioners a deeper understanding of the implications of stress in performance, as well as practical tools for allowing the mind-body to become a resilient "instrument" in the face of stressful situations.
